Date Approved

4-3-1995

Embargo Period

9-12-2016

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.A. in Learning Disabilities

Department

Interdisciplinary and Inclusive Education

College

College of Education

Advisor

Urban, Stanley

Subject(s)

Affective education; Cognitive styles; Learning, Psychology of; Teaching

Disciplines

Disability and Equity in Education

Abstract

This study was designed to determine if seventh grade basic skills and special education students who experienced different teaching styles would demonstrate an increased ability to solve problems on a criterion-referenced test. Pre and posttesting requiring multiple choice responses were given to a sample of 27 seventh grade students. The Control group consisted of 11 BSI students while the experimental group of sixteen students contained 6 classified, 2 ESL students, and 8 borderline BSI students.

A task performance project, Games-Recycled Math, in which students of the experimental group planned, designed, and constructed a mathematical game, was designed and implemented over a four month period. The control group was taught through traditional teaching techniques utilizing paper and pencil tasks and focusing on mechanical steps applied in isolated contexts.

Data, based on t-statistics, revealed no significant impact from the different teaching techniques. However, individual comparisons revealed within the experimental group that the 2 ESL students demonstrated a 28% and 29% improvement in their scores. Classified students demonstrated increases of 32%, 18%, 18%, and 3%. Although the results cannot be labeled conclusive, they suggest serious consideration be given towards the cognitive apprenticeship model for students with disabilities.

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